SANTA MONICA, Calif. (Dec. 12, 2011) — The GRAMMY Foundation® (www.grammyfoundation.org) today announced that 125 schools nationwide have been selected as GRAMMY® Signature Schools semifinalists (www.grammyintheschools.com) for 2012. Created in 1998, the GRAMMY Signature Schools program recognizes top U.S. public high schools that are making an outstanding commitment to music education during an academic school year. GRAMMY Signature Schools are made possible in part through the generous support of Best Buy, Campbell's Labels For Education program, the Ford Motor Company Fund, and Gibson Foundation.Applications for the 2013GRAMMY Signature Schools program are online at www.grammyintheschools.com and the deadline to apply is Oct. 22, 2012.

"The GRAMMY Signature Schools program sustains excellence in music education by granting awards to public high school music programs in communities across the country," said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy® and the GRAMMY Foundation. "Each of these semifinalist schools should be commended for their commitment to keeping the arts in their curriculum for the long term benefits of their students."

In mid-March 2012, the GRAMMY Foundation will announce the finalists for the GRAMMY Signature Schools program. These schools will receive a custom award and a monetary grant ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 to benefit their music program. The top schools are designated Gold recipients. The best of the Gold recipients is named the National GRAMMY Signature School. The remaining schools are designated GRAMMY Signature Schools.

The List of 2012 GRAMMY Signature Schools Semifinalists:

Academy of Music at Hamilton High School — Los Angeles

Adlai E. Stevenson High School — Lincolnshire, Ill.

Air Academy — USAF Academy, Colo.

Albany High School — Albany, Calif.

Allen High School — Allen, Texas

Arizona School for the Arts — Phoenix

Arsenal Technical High School — Indianapolis

Ballard High School — Seattle

Bay Shore High School — Bay Shore, N.Y.

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School — Bethesda, Md.

Billings Senior High School — Billings, Mont.

Billings West High School — Billings, Mont.

Boston Arts Academy — Boston

Brownsburg High School — Brownsburg, Ind.

Burnt Hills-Ballston Lake High School — Burnt Hills, N.Y.

Carlsbad High School — Carlsbad, Calif.

Central Dauphin East High School — Harrisburg, Penn.Central Dauphin High School — Harrisburg, Penn.

South Orange County School of the Arts-Dana Hills High School — Dana Point, Calif.

Spruce Creek High School — Port Orange, Fla.

Thomas Jefferson High School — San Antonio, Texas

Tri-Cities High School — East Point, Ga.

Tuscarora High School — Frederick, Md.

Union High School — Camas, Wash.

W.T. Clarke High School — Westbury, N.Y.

Walnut High School — Walnut, Calif.

Walt Whitman High School — Huntington Station, N.Y.

Walter Johnson High School — Bethesda, Md.

Warren Central High School — Indianapolis

Warwick Valley High School — Warwick, N.Y.

Waubonsie Valley High School — Aurora, Ill.

West Port High School — Ocala, Fla.

West Salem High School — Salem, Ore.

Western High School — Anaheim, Calif.

Westwood High School — Austin, Texas

White Station High School — Memphis, Tenn.

Whitney M. Young Magnet High School — Chicago

William A. Shine-Great Neck South High School — Great Neck, N.Y.

Williamsport Area High School — Williamsport, Penn.

Winston Churchill High School — Potomac, Md.

York Community High School — Elmhurst, Ill.

The selection process for GRAMMY Signature Schools begins each year in August when the GRAMMY Foundation mails notification to more than 20,000 public high schools from districts large and small, urban, suburban and rural, requesting information about each school's music program. Applications are completed and submitted online in October at www.grammyintheschools.com. After the applications are scored, finalists are identified and asked to submit additional documentation, such as recordings of school concerts, sample concert programs and repertoire, which is then reviewed by an independent blue-ribbon committee of top music educators and professionals to determine the schools that merit GRAMMY Signature School status.

The GRAMMY Foundation was established in 1989 to cultivate the understanding, appreciation and advancement of the contribution of recorded music to American culture — from the artistic and technical legends of the past to the still unimagined musical breakthroughs of future generations of music professionals. The Foundation accomplishes this mission through programs and activities that engage the music industry and cultural community as well as the general public. The Foundation works in partnership year-round with its founder, The Recording Academy, to bring national attention to important issues such as the value and impact of music and arts education and the urgency of preserving our rich cultural heritage. Campbell's Labels For Education program is proud to be the official education partner of the GRAMMY In The Schools® programs. For more information, please visit www.grammyintheschools.com.

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